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For those who know me and my children well, you know I struggle with my kids eating! I have VERY picky eaters and I am not ashamed of it though I do feel judged at times when people ask me what I pack my kids for lunch daily.

So now you are curious right?!Snacks: while I do always try to pack a fruit, likely it will come back untouched (depending on their moods that morning), crackers of every sort, and any kind of snack that hides a vegetable in them.Main lunch: cold dry toast, cold toasted waffles and any and every kind of cereal that you can imagine (no sugar cereals as they are not allowed in my house)

Yup, THE STRUGGLE IS REAL FRIENDS!!!!!!!!

I was offered the chance to try out the kids Simply Protein kids bars and although I was slightly worried about having them try something new (that is no easy task), I love Simply Protein’s bars for myself so I figured I would give it a shot. Of course, I had to try it out to make sure they were “mom” approved and I have to say I really liked them!

Note: Keep in mind that all my reviews are my honest opinions. If I don’t like it, I don’t review it PERIOD THE END

What I love about Simply Protein KidsBar–The texture is close to a Krispy Bar (if you get what I am saying ;)) which is great for the picky eaters because the texture is familiar
– It is very sweet appealing to the young audiences
– They are peanut free so safe for school lunch boxes
– Each bar has 4 grams of protein, has only 2 grams of sugar and 4 grams of fiber
– The ingredients are plant based
– They are kosher for those families who are observant or go to schools which only Kosher foods are allowed
– They are gluten free
– Come in 2 flavors: I tried the Strawberry Vanilla one, but there is also chocolate brownie which I am very curious to test out
– Doesn’t leave a weird after taste, but the strawberry vanilla flavor definitely lasts a bit in your mouth

Check out your local grocery store to purchase a box and try them for yourselves
T.
xo

So you blinked and it somehow turned into fall! The kids went back to school, the after school programs started, the weekend programs started which means in my house one parent takes the older and one person takes the younger and after a crazy week of running around you realize that you have spent little to no time with two members of your group of 4 and there is no time to catch up.

Welcome to my life! So what do I do? I find Netflix television shows and movies that we can all agree on (that is no easy task these days), sit down on the couch in our pjs and make a bag of popcorn and just hang out together. It’s pretty much my favourite part of the day.

Where to Start? Check out these great family titles

– Maleficent– Zootopia (The kids LOVE this one and frankly so do I)– Planes: Fire & Rescue– Tangled– The Princess and the Frog– Treasure Planet– Cool Runnings– Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End

Don’t forget to take some time out of your busy schedules to sit down as a crew and put on some of the newest Netflix shows on.

The weather has spoken and summer is coming to an end. Camp is over, programs for the fall have been set and your child’s back to school backpack is almost ready to go. Hard to believe that this is the end, it’s just too short.

Now it’s time to start hyping up back-to-school and talking to your kids about appropriate classroom behaviour (well at least I do) and what to expect, but that is never an easy conversation especially with the little one’s because they just don’t get it. Sometimes our television friends do the best job explaining and with these new Netflix titles they just might understand the underlying message.

For the Little Guys

1. Curious George
2. Zoboomafoo
3. Yo Gabba Gabba! (my big guy has been watching the show for years and it’s amazing how many lessons he has picked up from this show)
4. Walking with Dinosaurs
5. Planet Earth: The Complete Collection
6. The Adventures of Chuck & Friends
7. Animal Mechanicals (teaches kids about working together to get the job done)
8. The Magic School Bus
9. The Cat in the Hat
10. Dinotrux (the new AMAZING series teaching kids to work together using their individual skills and problem solve)
11. Ever After High: Way too Wonderland

Best of luck with Back to School to you the parent (we need the luck … well I know I do) and of course the kiddies
T.
xo

This back-to-school year was a big one for me … my first born was going into Junior Kindergarten … WHAT?! How did this happen so quickly, I mean I swear he was just 2.

Truly, I am not sure who was more nervous, him or me. It was as if I was going back to school again, I couldn’t sleep partially because of excitement for him and partially I was worrying about all the little things I know I can’t control. It wasn’t until the middle of the night I realized that I had NO idea what to send in his backpack, I thought there was some sort of guide (kind of like when your baby is born you wonder if there is some sort of mom manual). Thank goodness for my friends with older kids at the same school, because they got a frantic call from me at 6:30am. As unorganized as I was, I had a moment of clarity and started making lists of lunch and snack options which made grocery shopping that evening a lot easier and then making secondary lists of food rotations. Yes this seems crazy, but I have the PICKIEST eater in my house and mornings are very slow in my house so this just helps make things just a tad bit easier and faster in the mornings especially the first day of school morning.

It wasn’t until we walked out of the house and my big guy looked at me with sheer excitement and said he was ready to go to Junior Kindergarten and that is when I smiled and realized that everything was going to be ok (for him and me).

Enjoy these moments because they only happen once
Happy Back-to-School to all your little one’s
T.
xo

Make sure to check out Playtex Mommyville to see what other moms have to say about their products and give them a “like” on Facebook

One of my biggest pet peeves (well these days anyway) are decals that don’t directly stick onto fabric. Beyond the fact that more and more clothes are being made tagless, my littlest son has found a very interesting way of soothing himself … wait for it … touching tags … yup thats right give him a tag and he will instantly put his thumb in his mouth (the pic below clearly demonstrates that) which is why I don’t want to put a label on the tags of his possessions. As dumb as it sounds, I don’t want to compromise the texture of the tag considering it is the only thing that soothes him so, a decal that can stick (and stay) on fabric is a must.

When I received my sons Kidecals, the first thing I did was grab a few of his blankies and stick the labels right on the fabric itself. After a few hours of letting it set, I threw the blankies in the wash and dryer and impatiently waited for them to come out to see what happened. I honestly felt like I was a kid waiting for cookies to come out of the oven! Curious what happened? They were still on there, no corners lifted and in fact the bond felt tighter on the fabric. The adhesive on these decals are incredible.

What I love aboutKidecals– You DO NOT need to order different labels for different products – one stop shop here! One label for everything– Their designs are AMAZING!!!– There are a lo of design options– Crazy strong adhesive: the more you use them and rough them up the better they stick– They are all waterproof, dishwasher and washing machine safe– Not only do they have labels, they also have one of the coolest stickers I have ever seen … keyboard stickers! You must check these out.
– Value packs are available which have all different size labels
– Once you choose the design you like, you fill in your child’s information and you can change the location of the personalization on the decal (left, right, up, down)
– Easy ordering: once your design is ready, choose the type of set you want

GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY!In celebration of Back to School, our friends at Kidecals are generously giving away a $21 voucher for school labels which will get you 36 labels in the “everyday set” or 120 labels in the “mini set” to one lucky reader. The contest is open to Canadian and US residents. Here’s how to enter:

I can’t believe that in one week, kids will be heading to school and now I am part of that group with my almost 4 year old heading into Junior Kindergarden … eek!!!!

I know I don’t have to go get books, paper, pens etc, so what do I need? A lunch bag and water bottle. Seems simple, but in true Terri fashion, I don’t want just anything, I want something that is durable, insulated and obviously it has to be cute.

I previously tested out the adorable labels from Stuck on You (which were perfect for camp and they surely went through the ringer) and was recently offered to review their lunchbox and water bottle. I was able to pick my colour (there were only a few colour options, but that wasn’t a game changer for me) and then had a whole bunch of cute images to choose from to which I added my son’s initials. I then chose another image to go on the water bottle (I chose a picture of an older boy riding a bike with a younger little boy in tow which he thinks it is a picture of him and his brother), added his initials and within days it was shipped to me.

What I love about Stuck on You– The lunch bag is a great size (not too big not too small)– The insulation is good quality (trust me I have seen some cheap insulation which doesn’t last past a few uses)
– There is a mesh pocket on the inside
– Perfectly fits the water bottle, a small snack bag and sandwich
– Has a handle for easy carrying
– The water bottle has a flip lid and my son can easily open it
– The website is super easy to order from

Did I mention that there is currently a sale on both the water bottle and the lunch bag?!

All-in-all my big guy was super stocked about his new lunch bag and water bottle (it’s his new GO TO water bottle) and I was very happy with the quality

GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY!Thank you again to our friends at Stuck on You, they are generously giving away a $25 voucher to two lucky winners!!! The contest is open to both Canadian and US residents. Here’s how to enter: